The Mariners promoted Zunino in large part to make the draft picks sign immediately rather than drag it out for a month or so. This conclusion is inescapable:
Consider,
1. that Zunino famously signed within a few days because he was tired of sitting around and wanted to play baseball. He was an Aquasock within a few weeks. This bucked a prima donna trend 'mongst top draft guys of holding out for extra cash.
2. The timing of the Zunino promotion is suspicious, it occurred immediately after the draft during a long homestand. If there wasn't an ulterior motive, why promote Brandon Bantz and then DFA him a week later? Z obviously wanted the headlines to pop "Zunino" at the same time the draft kids were in town for their welcome to Seattle tour.
3. Z had a clear motive for signing the draft class early and at reasonable prices. He didn't have to travel cross country via local commuter airports for a month and give kids the Kirby sale at their farm. This leaves him free for more important projects, like figuring out whether Erasmo is ready.
4. Z's bosses had a clear motive to promote Zunino. They are a. Firm believers in Z's scouting acumen and don't want to miss out on any prospects that might save them millions in the long term. b. They might save money in the short term by signing the players under slot and not incurring any penalties. c. Zunino's extra arbitration cash is years down the road, and discounted as a result. Hype and money now are worth more than a bit of extra cash later.
5. The young men are impressionable. I can hear the spiel now: "Sign now and we'll put you in Everett within a few weeks. This is the fast track to the bigs. This is where Felix played, this is where Zunino played and . . .hey Mike, is that you? Didn't see you there. Come over and introduce yourself to these youngsters.".
6. This all worked, and most of the draft class is locked up.
Thirteen draftees signed on the bottom line, including No. 1 pick D.J. Peterson. Others: The Tank (OF Tyler O'Neill, 3rd); SS Jack Reinheimer, 5th; OF Corey Simpson, 6th; LHP Tyler Olson, 7th; LHP Jake Zokan, 9th (Fear the Zokan!); RHP Emilio Pagan, 10th; 1b (bigger little bro') Justin Seager, 12th; IF Jeff Zimmerman, 19th; RHP Kevin McCoy, 24th; RHP Ricky Claudio, 27th; OF Chantz Mack, 29th; RHP Rafael Pineda, 30th.
By process of elimination: OF Austin Wilson, 2nd; LHP Ryan Horstman, 4th; and SS Tyler Smith, 8th remain unsigned from the top 12 (given we have unofficial word on RHP Zack Littel, 11th).
Smith is playing in the College World Series for Oregon State and will surely sign after that, and the other two are also likely to sign.
Peterson, Olson and J-Seags are headed to Everett (where Mike Zunino started last year as well) and the others will play at Pulaski or Arizona.
AAA -- Tacoma 12, Las Vegas 5 -- Box
And, speaking of Oregon State (were we? yes, we were kinda) ...
The most notable ex-Beaver in the organization had a bust-out game. Wherefore Art Thou Romero? Goin' deep in Vegas. (Yes, erudite readers, we know "wherefore" actually means "why," not "where," in olde-timey English, but it's baseball chat already.)
Stefen Romero (Talk40 #11): 4-for-5, double, 2 HR
And "wherefore" art Dustin Ackley?
In left field! Yes, Nick Franklin (Talk40 #7) is making an impression at 2b for the Big Club all right. Ackley in the outfield for the first time since 2009 Arizona Fall League. He had a hit and a walk.
And so, as someone other than William Shakespeare wrote ... What's the name of the guy on second? Exactly!
No, wait ... it was Brad Miller (Talk40 #6). Ah! The game's afoot!
I'll quit now.
OK. One more.
"Wherefore" art the good version of James Paxton (Talk40 #3)?
No one knows. He wasn't on the mound Wednesday: 5.0 IP, 91pitches, 9 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 1 K.
But that was good for the win, because D.J. Mitchell was even worse. At least we have a different D.J. to follow now.
High-A -- Lancaster 10, High Desert 3 -- Box
Not much good to report from Lancaster, which is outside Edwards Air Force Base.
Chris Taylor (Talk40 #28) hit his seventh homer in the 8th, and Daniel Paolini (Talk40 #26) got his ninth just two batters later. I could do "Taylor Made" and "Pow! Pow! Paolini" but it hardly seems worth it when the team was already down 10-0.
Low-A -- Clinton 3, Peoria 2 -- Box
Janelfry Zorrilla started the year off the radar, but he's been doing his best to get on there. On Wednesday, he homered, singled, and delivered the walk-off sacrifice fly. He's now slugging an even .500.
The 9th-inning win came too late for starter Matt Anderson, but he had a fine, if strikeout-free, outing: 6.0 IP, 8 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K.
Looking Ahead
Roenis Elias (26intheMix) is slated for Jackson as it resumes play in Birmingham.
Comments
Great stuff, mojician!